C759 Strong Soldiers and Strong Horses!
Aboard the Skyreach Consortium's Cloud Cruiser, Jin Xiaolie, Ma Jianjiang, and several other powerhouses were soaring through the Land of Terror. Each person on the ship had reached the Lunar Spirit stage.
"Is it really Yu Yuan?"
Jin Xiaolie's Lunar Spirit radiated a brilliant golden light, his soul suffused with a divine golden glow—a sign that a Spirit Walk cultivator had achieved Great Perfection and was on the cusp of forming a Solar Spirit. He had been dispatched to the Land of Terror by Qin Yan after the demise of Lin Yue and Faang Yingzi's souls.
Upon using a mystique to locate the Cloud Cruiser, still adrift in the Land of Terror, Jin Xiaolie struggled to accept that Yu Yuan was responsible for the explosion of the two counselors' Lunar Spirits.
"It is indeed Yu Yuan," confirmed Ma Jianjiang, his face etched with sorrow. "Those two accused him of being a traitor to the Everlands and took the initiative to confront him under the guise of purging a traitor."
Other members of the Skyreach Consortium wore peculiar expressions. One of them, with a sardonic grin, let out a chilling laugh. "A dog chasing mice tends to overstep! Whether Yu Yuan has betrayed our world is still up for debate. Moreover, the Consortium has always steered clear of continental disputes. Perhaps those two were eyeing something Yu Yuan possessed?"
The speaker was none other than the Golden Fiend, a figure Yu Yuan had previously encountered in the Forgotten Ruins. This practitioner of enigmatic Spirit Magic was the most formidable in the group, naturally attuned to the Land of Terror. Having honed his skills there upon first entering the Lunar Spirit realm, he had forged strong connections with its formidable inhabitants.
Jin Xiaolie, nearing the pinnacle of the Spirit Walk realm, might not have regarded the Golden Fiend highly elsewhere. Yet, in the Land of Terror, he showed the renowned figure of the Aetherius Continent the utmost respect, often seeking his counsel.
"Counselor Huang is correct," Ma Jianjiang agreed with a subtle nod.
"I thought as much," Golden Fiend said with a sly chuckle, addressing Jin Xiaolie and the other Consortium members who had gathered. "In my view, Faang Yingzi and Lin Yue brought this upon themselves. It's hard to blame Yu Yuan for his decisive actions. Let me speak frankly, if you can avoid crossing Yu Yuan, it's in your best interest to do so."
"Especially in this extraordinary place!"
He had once gazed through the eyes of Shura in the Dark Realm and interacted with Yu Yuan in that magical little world.
He had witnessed certain events firsthand, and over the years, every recollection of that encounter filled him with dread toward Yu Yuan. That's why his friendly demeanor toward Yu Yuan in the Forgotten Ruins left Zhu Peining and the other senior members of the Skyreach Consortium baffled.
"What's your take, Ma Jianjiang?" someone called out.
After a moment's hesitation, Ma Jianjiang replied softly, "I believe Counselor Huang's suggestion is sound. There's no need for us to antagonize Yu Yuan in the Land of Terror."
"A mere junior who hasn't even condensed a Lunar Spirit, relying on artifacts to step into power, is he really that fearsome?" the person pressed, unconvinced.
Ma Jianjiang and Golden Fiend both nodded in agreement.
...
The Crucible of Evil soared through the void. General Lee Yuchan's face flickered with uncertainty as she trembled uncontrollably.
Her Lunar Spirit was ever-changing within the mouth of the cauldron, at times coalescing into a dark vortex, at others morphing into a frigid humanoid shape, and then tearing apart only to reassemble.
She was enduring the backlash of the Shadow Curse.
"No! I must find a way to resolve this backlash on my own!"
She clenched her teeth and continued to recite in her mind.
If she couldn't find a solution to the Shadow Curse's backlash and had to depend on Yu Yuan every time, wouldn't she be at his mercy for life, unable to ever stand tall again?
With this thought, her resolve to find a solution only strengthened.
Within the little world inside the cauldron.
Yu Yuan watched with exhilaration as the Frost Queen ascended to the eighth step of the stairway.
Having absorbed the soul power of the Spectre-level Frost Wyrm, the Frost Queen, who had been lower on the stairs, suddenly rose to become the first Bane to ascend to the eighth step!
The soul power of the Frost Wyrm was immense and harmonized perfectly with the Frost Queen.
As the Frost Queen gradually refined the captured Frost Wyrm, her rank naturally increased, surpassing the Second Bane in a meteoric rise.
At this moment, the Frost Queen stood proudly on the eighth level, drawing strength from all the Banes below her.
Even the Second Bane, positioned just behind her, helplessly and inevitably lost its refined Soul Power. None of the Banes on the lower steps were spared.
The Frost Queen employed this tactic to leverage the strength of the numerous Banes beneath her, refining the Spectre-level Frost Wyrm and harnessing its hidden ice energy to its fullest extent, integrating it into herself. On the eighth level, the Frost Queen stood like an ancient Evil God, her emanating Arctic Breath chilling Yu Yuan to the core.
"The Frost Queen can't engage in battle for a short period; she needs time to stabilize her power," Yu Yiyi said, her voice brimming with excitement. "Once the Frost Queen has completely expended the Frost Wyrm, she will undergo another transformation. Having secured her place on the eighth level, when she next reveals herself, her true power will be that of a Spectre from the Land of Terror, and she will bear a title to boot!"
"Excellent!" Yu Yuan exclaimed with joy.
Frost Queen's ability to subdue the Frost Wyrm was due to her prolonged stay in the Frozen Hellscape and the various extraordinary experiences she had undergone, which elevated her ice energy above that of the Frost Wyrm. If ice energy were categorized into levels, she had long surpassed the Frost Wyrm. The Frost Wyrm, not on par with her in the hierarchy of life's icy currents, cowered in fear. Further weakened by the amplification of the Soul Shatter rune circle, the Frost Wyrm succumbed to defeat.
Had the Frost Queen faced a Spectre other than this Frost Wyrm, which she could dominate, victory would have been impossible. But now, having captured the Frost Wyrm, once she fully assimilates it, she will truly possess the combat prowess of a Spectre!
"Master, please bestow upon him a new name," Yu Yiyi requested. As she spoke, the Second Bane on the seventh level burst forth with a captivating blood glow. "Whatever he was called before is irrelevant. From this moment forward, Master, please grace him with a brand-new name. He has reached the seventh level and, by all rights, is entitled to a new name."
Upon hearing this, the blood shadow that was the Second Bane underwent a dramatic transformation, morphing into a scarlet crescent moon!
Yu Yuan was taken aback. A name sparked in his mind, and he immediately came up with one, "From this day forward, he shall be known as Blood Moon! This name seems to be his desire, so let it be."
"Blood Moon? That's a decent name. A seventh-level Bane is showing a hint of sentience," Yu Yiyi mused from her hidden location, quickly approving of the name 'Blood Moon'. "Master, from now on, only those who reach the eighth level of the Bane will have the privilege of being renamed by you. We're changing the rules."
"Why is that?" Yu Yuan inquired, intrigued.
"We're on the right track. More Banes are forming at the fifth, sixth, and seventh levels," Yu Yiyi clarified. "We can't have you distracted by naming them. From the eighth level on, that's when it will happen."
Yu Yuan looked down from Blood Moon's position and noticed that the sixth level was vacant, with no Bane to take over the spots previously held by Frost Queen and Blood Moon.
Looking further down, at the fifth level, there were three newly formed Banes.
A white bear, a gray wolf, and a black phoenix, all in their soul forms.
The white bear was the Celestial Shade that had been pulled into the little world within Wangchuan's Spectre territory. After some refining, it had been directly placed on the fifth level.
A Celestial Shade's soul, once refined, earned its place on the fifth level.
Yu Yuan glanced at the gray wolf and black phoenix behind them but didn't recognize them.
Yu Yiyi quickly communicated, "Those two ascended from the very bottom. They started as evil spirits, transformed into Banes, and after several battles, they grew strong enough to reach the fifth level. It's understandable that you don't recognize them, Master."
"Ah," Yu Yuan acknowledged, then shifted his gaze down to the fourth level, where he saw dozens of Banes.
On the third level, there appeared to be six to seven hundred Banes.
The second level was teeming with over two thousand Banes, all poised and ready to burst forth and form a battle formation at any moment.
On the first level, one to two hundred new souls had coalesced into evil spirits and were in the process of being refined.
Observing the tiers of Banes, Yu Yuan understood that the higher the level, the stronger the Bane. The sheer number of Banes gave him a sudden sense of commanding a formidable force.
"Master, that woman is at her limit."
